Arnold v. Wittie

1924 OK 577, 227 P. 132, 99 Okla. 236, 1924 Okla. LEXIS 873
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedMay 27, 1924
Docket12445
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 1924 OK 577 (Arnold v. Wittie) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Arnold v. Wittie, 1924 OK 577, 227 P. 132, 99 Okla. 236, 1924 Okla. LEXIS 873 (Okla. 1924).

Opinion

Opinion by

RAY, C.

Plaintiff, claiming ownership under a conditional sales contract, commenced this action of replew against the First National Bank of Mangum, mortgagee in possession, to recover the possession of an automobile. The case was tried on the following statement of facts;

“The plaintiff and defendant stipulate and agree that the following is the undisputed facts in this case:
. ‘‘That the plaintiff sold the Dodge car which is the subject of this replevin action to Frank Wittie for $500 and took a note for $500 dated at Eldorado, Kan., May 27, 1919, signed by Frank Wittie for the car and that the same was filed in the ofiice of the register of deeds in Butler county, Kan., oh that day where the car was then located; that Frank Wittie moved to Mangum, Okla., bn or about June 1, 1919, and brought the car with him; that one payment of $75 was made on the note given as above made June 24, 1919; that on the 22nd day of August, 1919, the First National Bank of Mangum, Okla., for value, to wit: a loan of $916.87 took the chattel mortgage attached to its answer under which it claims the car anu that the same was filed in the office of the county clerk of Greer county, Okla., on the 29th day of August, 1919; that the First National Bank had no actual knowledge of the plaintiff’s claim under its mortgage when they took the mortgage, nor was the plaintiff’s mortgage ever filed or recorded in Greer county, Okla., until this suit was filed; that the First National Bank acted in good faith in taking it's mortgage; that on OcT tober 7, 1919, Olay Hall, an automobile repair man of Mangum, Okla.. filed a claim of lien statement in the office of the court clerk of Greer county, Okla., together with a statement of his account attached thereto and which lien statement claim and account is submitted to this court for its consideration as to its validity, and which claim is in the total sum of $377.66, and which sum was paid by the plaintiff, The Arnold Automobile Company, to the said Olay Hall; that said claim of lien was released on October 17, 1919,. by the said Clay Hall; that the First National Bank had no actual knowledge of the alleged claim or lien on the part of Olay Hall at the time it took its mortgage above set forth; that on or about the 15th day of October, 1919, The First National Bank went into peaceable possession - of the car on the order of Frank Wittie and by the consent of Olay Hall and had possession of the car when served in this action with the replevin writ and made a redelivery bond and retained possession of said car, and-that said car was advertised by the First National Bank as provided by statute and sold under the terms of its mortgage.
“It is agreed further that the defendant Frank Wittie had kept said car in Greer county, Okla., during all of the time commencing on or about June 1. 1919, up to the time that the First National Bank took possession of the same.
“It is agreed that all the exhibits attached to the petition lie considered in evidence as well as the replevin affidavit, replevin bond, replevin writ and redelivery bond.”

One of the exhibits referred to is the contract on which plaintiffs rely which they contend is a conditional sales contract, but which the defendant contends is a chattel mortgage. In our view of the law it is not material whether the instrument be held to be a conditional sales contract or a chattel mortgage for the reason that the registration laws governing the registration of chattel mortgages is applicable to and controls the registration of conditional sales contracts. The automobile was delivered, the instrument executed and recorded in the state of Kansas. As the law of that state has not been pleaded or proven we will as *237 sume the Kansas law to be the same as the applicable law of this state. ¡Section 8551, Comp. Stat. 1921, relating to conditional sales contracts, Is as follows:

"Any instrument in writing, or promissory note, evidencing the conditional sale of personal property, which retains the title to the same in the vendor until the purchase price is paid in full, shall be void as against innocent purchasers, or the creditors of the vendee, unless the original instrument, or a true copy thereof, shall have been deposited in the office of the register of deeds in and for the county wherein the property shall be kept; and when so deposited, it shall be subject to the law applicable to the filing of chattel mortgages; and any conditional, verbal sale of personal property, reserving to the vendor any title in the property sold, shall be void as to creditors and innocent purchasers for value.”

Under this section a conditional sales contract is void as against creditors and mortgagees unless the original or an authenticated copy thereof is filed in the office of the register of deeds, now county .clerk, “and when so deposited it shall be subject to the law applicable to the filing of chattel mortgages.” The applicable sections, relating lo the registration of chattel mortgages, are as follows:

“Sec. 7650. A mortgage of personal property is void as against creditors of the mortgagor, subsequent purchasers, and incum-brancers of the property, for value, unless the original, or an authenticated copy thereof, be' filed by depositing the same in the office of the register of deeds of the county where the property mortgaged, or any part thereof, is at such time situated. * * *
“Sec. 7651. The filing of a mortgage of personal property, in conformity to the provisions of this article, operates as notice thereof to all subsequent purchasers and in-cumbrancers of so much of said property as is at the time mentioned in the preceding-section located in the county or counties wherein such mortgage or authenticated copy thereof is filed: Provided, that when n mortgaged chattel is moved into this state, or from one county to another, and previous filing of the mortgage shall ’ not operate as notice as against subsequent creditors, purchasers, mortgagees or incumbrancers for a longer period than one hundred and twenty days after such removal, but such mortgage must be refiled in the county to which the chattel is removed and in which it is permanently located.”

It will be observed that under section 7650 a chattel mortgage is void as against creditors of the mortgagor, subsequent purchasers, and incumbrancers unless the original or authenticated copy thereof is filed with the county clerk of the county where the mortgaged property, or a part thereof, is at the time situated. The registration of the conditional sales contract imparts notice to purchasers and creditors to the same extent and with the same effect as does the registration of a chattel mortgage. Shafer v. National Cash Register Co., 16 Okla. 117, 82 Pac. 646. It being conceded that the instrument was not recorded in Greer county where the property was permanently situated it is void as against the claim of the defendant unless it be held that by the com-iiy between the states the courts will protect the vendor under a conditional sales contract, or the mortgagee under a chattel mortgage, executed and recorded according to the laws of another state, to a greater extent than they will protect such vendors or mortgagees where the contract is executed in this state.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1924 OK 577, 227 P. 132, 99 Okla. 236, 1924 Okla. LEXIS 873, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/arnold-v-wittie-okla-1924.